Improved device for checking- horses



MN El? e? CU Y i a abated Wnden @than lttite.

WML? I C1 IMPROVED DEVICE FOR CHECKING- HORSES.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part ofthesame.

To all whom, fit may coiwern:

Be it known that I, 'lHnoDon I'rzs'rnrn, ofthe city, county, and Stateof New York, have invented a new and iinprovedDevice for CheckingHorses; and I do hereby declare the-following to be a full, clear, andexact description thereof, which will enable those skilled in the art tomake and use the same, reference being had lto the accompanying drawing,forming part of this specification, in which drawing- Figure 1 is anelevation, in perspective, of my improvement as it appears when theheadstall to which it is applied is placed upon the head of a horse.

Figure 2 is a iont view of one side orhalf of the headstall detachedfrom a horse.

' Similar letters indicate corresponding parts.

This invention relates to meansfor 'checking unruly or runaway horses;and

`It consists in several novel features of improvement, whereby suchhorses can be controlled without loss of time, and without requiring agreat degree of skill or strength'in the driver.

My improvement for checking and controlling horses is applied by' metothe headstall or bridle, as will ap pear fromthe following description.

rlhe letter A designates the ordinary winkers, or blinds, which' areplaced in such aposition as to prevent a horse from seeing objects atfhis side or behind.

The winkels are connected to each other by a curved or bow-spring,B,which rises, in the form of an arc of a circle, from the, upper edgesof the winkers, and goes through the upper part ofthe pendent lug C, socalled, Awhich hangs vdown over the forehead from the crownpiece1),-thev spring being in this example secured to the lug, so that saiilparts cannot move independently of each other.

The object of the spring B is to hold the winkers, or

blinds A, apart at a proper distance from the head of p the animal, sothat his -vision in a forward direction shall not be obstructed lwhenthe winkers, or blinds, are in their normal position.

Another object of the spring is to restore the winkers to their normalposition away from the eyes ofthe animal, after the winkers are releasedfrom the pull of the rein, that operates to closethcm, as is hereinafterdescribed.

The spring B is covered with4 leather, to preserve it from rusting, andtomake its appearance and color in keeping with' the rest of theheadstall or bridle.

The winkers are drawn inward toward the head of the animal, so as toclose his eyes, orfprcvent him from seeing, by means of checker-eins, EF, which are secured to the winkers at or near their front edges, goingthence respectively through and around pulleys or runners in the sidesof Vthe lug, or front piece C; and out at the bottom oi' said lugA C;thence backward under pulleys or runners arranged in the check-straps GG; thence upward toward the neck of the animal, and over pnlleys orrunners arranged in the ends of the billets H H, which hang down fromthe crown-piece; and thence backward to the saddle ofthe harness, wherethe said check-reins E F are united together and passed loosely around aterret of the saddle, at which point they are connected to a rein, I,which extends backward to the drivel'. Y

By means of this construction and` arrangement, IA

am enabled to operate and close the winkers when a horse is unruly orrunning, and thereby check him and bring him at once under control, thecheck-reins E F being continnations of the main rein I, which, like thedriving-rein, 'is to be held by the driver, or else is ar-4 ranged so asto be at hand when wanted. v

When the check-reins are pulled back to close the winkers, theresistance of the spring B must be overcome, the ends of the springbeing drawn toward eachl other, so that the spring has increased powerto throw the winkers open, and draw the checkreins forward againwhenever the pull on the rein ceases.

The spring being applied to the top edges of the w-inkers, causes saidwinkel-sto close first at the bottom part, so that the same adaptthemselves to the formation of the horses head.

.'Io prevent the winkers from being thrown out of position by thestrainof the closing-straps, I have applied a strap, L, which extends throughu'nder' the head, as shown in fig'. l.

Without this strap, the winkers are liable to become displaced, and theaction of my checking-apparatus is rendered uncertain and impractioable.

I combine with the check-reins E F, that close the winkers or blinds, asupplementary' check or throatstrap, J, which passes behind and underthe head, and is attached by its ends to the check-reins E F, as shownin both figures of the-drawing.

The said strap J is sol arranged on the check-reins, that when thelatter are drawn back, the strap J moves back with it, and pressesagainst the windpipe of the animal1 and by that means aids incontrolling and in. reducing him to obedience.

When the check-reins are released `from the pull of the driver, they,and the throat-strap and the winkers, 'or blinds, resume their formerposition, by the action of the spring B, which is suficiently powerfulto pull -the check-reins forward again and force open the winkreins E F,combined with the winkers, or blinds A, and spring B, substantially 'asdescribed.

2. 'lbe combination of the winkers A, the springr B, the check-reins EF, :md the lug or frout piece C, substantially as described :und shown.

3. The combination of the throat-strop J, checkreins E I, winkers A, andspring B, substantially as described.

4. The safety-strap L, in combinationl with the winkel-s A andcheok-reius E F, substantially as set forth.

Witnesses:

W. HAUFF, E. F. KASTENHUBER.

THEoDoR ITZSTEIN.

